Mock Draft Monday: What To Do With Two Ones and Two Two’s?

NEPD Staff Writer: Mike Gerken

NEPD Staff Contributor: Jeff Fidler

The Patriots have been busy since our last Mock Draft Monday and for fans of the draft, it is very exciting. The team did lose its deep threat in Brandin Cooks, but were able to get really good value for him and now have two picks in the first round and two picks in the second, which should make the Patriots a very active team on draft day. There are no rules today, we left it open to interpretation since we had to start thinking about a new set of parameters and group of players. Jeff went above and beyond and did a full two round mock, I took the easy way out and did a full 7 rounder for the Patriots only. Enjoy.

JEFF’s 2 Round Mock w/Trades:

Cleveland – S Barkley. Cleveland takes a RB that can create as good as RB we’ve seen in the last 20 years. They don’t have a QB … yet. But now have Barkley, Gordon, Juice, Nkjou as weapons when they do find their their man.2) NY Giants – Quenton Nelson. Giants are making one last run with Eli. Gettleman loves Eli & builds around him instead of replacing him immediately.3) New York Jets – Josh Allen. Reading between the lines & a bit of guessing but I think the jets have Allen & Mayfield as their top QB’s in this draft. The get Allen from me.4) Cleveland – Bradley Chubb – Nope not yet Cleveland. Instead you get the best DLine one football (in 2 years) & an outstanding player & man in Chubb. Imagine Chubb, Garrett, Ogun & Ogbah in a NASCAR package this year?

14) Green Bay – Lamar Jackson. Green Bay might not an mine need at QB to some fans but Rodgers is 35+ & has missed quite a few games over his career. Jackson could sit & learn behind a HOF & someone capable of understanding where he’s coming from.

16) Baltimore – Courtland Sutton. Another big target for Flacco on an offense that needs the help.

17) Indy– Mike Mcglinchey. OL has been a huge problem in Indy. They have to address it in order to save the Luck era.

18) Seattle– Marcus Davenport. Could, probably should go OL but Davenport is the last of 1st round rush guys & Seattle’s DL was less than perfect last year even with all the names. They need help on DL almost just as bad.

19) Dallas– Harold Landry. Dallas could a fee different ways here but pairing Landry w/ D-Law is too good to pass up

Round 1 Pick 23: Connor Williams, OT: Williams is athletic and a smooth mover with good size. He has shorter arms than I like and he was injured this season, but prior to the injury, he played a bad game. While I am not in love with this pick, I think under the guidance of Dante, Williams could be a very good Tackle and push for playing time immediately. If I am being honest, I might have gone a different direction if I had a due over.

Round 1 Pick 31: Isaiah Oliver, CB: I know Corner is not the biggest need, but I think the way the league is now, you can never have enough good ones and I really like Oliver’s game. He is long and athletic and he tracks the ball well and has playmaker ability. He needs to work on his run support and tackling, but it is not terrible by any means. Pairing Oliver with Gilmore gives the Patriots a great 1/2 at the position.

Round 2, Pick 11: Sam Hubbard, Edge: While Hubbard might not be the dynamic Edge Rusher that fans clamor for, he is a well rounded player with good size and great mental makeup. His game screams Patriot and I think he can be a day one contributor who can make plays in a variety of ways.

Round 2, pick 31: Dallas Goedert, TE: If the Patriots can get my #1 TE in the class at this pick, I will be a very happy man come draft day. Goedert is not Gronk (no one is) but he is a well rounded player who can be a mismatch in the passing game and a functional blocker with immense upside in both areas.

Round 3, pick 31: Kyle Lauletta, QB: Again, if this were to happen in real life, there will be a large smile on my face. I don’t think it is out of the realm of possibility that Lauletta could be a target with their first pick in the second, so getting him here is a steal in my opinion. He needs time to develop, but that is what makes New England a perfect situation for him. If he can get a little stronger and learn the nuances of the position, he has starter potential with a high ceiling.

Round 6, pick 24: Darius Leonard, LB: I hadn’t done a mock since last week and with all the picks exchanged, I realized the Patriots now have a large gap between picks and I saw a lot of names go off the board that I would like to get my hands on, so I expect the Patriots to be active to plug some holes. Leonard is a small school prospect that has the physical and athletic traits the Patriots look for. He is smart and productive with position versatility. He looks comfortable coming up in the box or rushing the passer as well as dropping into coverage. Strength is a big issue and I am not sure his frame can handle much more and he doesn’t always seem to trust his eyes. He tends to try and run around blockers rather than go through them, which can take him out of plays. I think with some development though, he can be a solid contributor.

Round 6, pick 36: Byron Pringle, WR: Slot option with good size and route running ability. Checkered past and some focus drops need to be addressed, but he could be the long term replacement for Edelman or Amendola.

Round 7, pick 1: Dane Cruikshank, S: Height, Weight, Speed prospect who needs to be put in the right role to succeed, but if a team does so, he can be very productive. He is a hard hitting tackler that struggles in coverage. Bring him closer to the line of scrimmage and let him be a monster in run support. Has the athletic ability to cover, but technique and mental processing must improve.

1st – OT Kolton Miller, UCLA: Seems like a good Patriots fit. Some think they traded Cooks to help get they’re future QB but I think it’s more likely they traded him for their future left tackle. Supremely athletic for his size and has good strength/toughness. Has the potential to become a beast with the right coaching (which we have).

1st – LB Leighton Vander Esch, Boise State: Athletic linebacker who’s good against the run and in coverage. With Marquis Flowers back, I think we would be set at the position for the present AND the future if we take a linebacker early.

2nd – EDGE Josh Sweat, Florida: All around edge player. Crazy athletic and strong. Can speed rush or power rush, set the edge, and cover. The fact that we could get this sort of player here is incredible value. Obviously, he has an injury history but it’s very apparent that those issues are behind him.

2nd – QB Kyle Lauletta, Richmond: Potential QB of the future.

3rd (trade) – S Dane Cruikshank, Arizona: Played the “spur” position for Arizona in 2017, which is a linebacker/safety hybrid. He’s a top-notch athlete who has experience playing corner and is an aggressive tackler/big hitter, but needs to improve his open field tackling. He’s the perfect player to develop behind Chung.

6th – RB Ryan Nall, Oregon State: All around bruising running back with low fumble rate. He could play tight end or h-back too because of his size, athleticism, receiving ability, and blocking ability. Super valuable offensive weapon this late in the draft.

6th – TE Andrew Vollert, Weber State: Size and athleticism. 6’5.5” 240 with a 4.57 40-yard dash. He’s also a good route runner and put up great stats in college. He’s unproven as a blocker but could develop with some added weight. I would see him on the practice squad initially but has huge potential.

7th – Trade: This pick may be better used for trading up or trading for a player from another team.

Hey Mike thanks for the feedback. I really appreciate it. I hope you don’t mind if I repost my mock on the next article. I don’t want to spam the site but I have noticed people typically only comment on the most recently published thread.

And thanks to you also Carlos, for your feedback.

In reference to James, he was initially mocked to go late in the first. Because I typically don’t watch college sports I have to rely on draft sites that provide analysis of prospects’ collegiate careers. I most often use CBS and NFL.com. The latter has altered the format through which they present said information and the former is providing far less detailed information than they have in years past. Both sites have very disparate information. One site might have a guy going 3rd round and the other in the first.

CBS has James going 2nd overall. I find that less believable than him falling to 23rd. I suspect there will be a big time run on quarterbacks and James will likely be picked between 10 and 20. But a few years back a DT named Malcolm Brown inexplicably fell from the top 10 all the way down to 32nd overall, right into the hands of our defending champs. Maybe we will profit from a similar windfall.